WTO says no to EU duties on displays, printers, and set top boxes

Way back in 1996 the WTO brokered a deal between 72 participating countries that eliminated duties on the import of products like computer displays, set-top boxes, and printers. The agreement was called the information technology agreement or ITA.

The EU has been charging duties on these products claiming that new features on printers and display move them into the consumer electronics market. The WTO has found that these duties were improperly levied against the products.

The final report will be issued in August. The amount of money from the duties on these products collected in 2007 was about $11 billion USD.